Monthly Archives: August 2010

Military ranks of Order of Knights Templar. Templar ranks and organization structure in medieval Europe. Templar Grandmaster, Marshal, Knight, Sergeant and more.

Templar ranking system was unique in medieval times, other knight orders like Hospitallers, Teutonic Knights have own ranking system, usually similar to the following Templar one.

Knights Templar Ranks

Knights Templar Ranks

Grand Master
This office was for life, and the Grand Master was in charge of the entire Order, worldwide. Throughout history, a couple of men retired from the position of Grand Master, with the pope’s permission, but for the most part, dying was the only way out of the job.

Master and Commander
The Master and Commander was the local commander in charge of the commandery — a small templar “city” and stronghold. He had complete command in the field.

Seneschal
The Seneschal was the right-hand man for the Master and was sometimes called a Grand Commander. In peace, the Seneschal administered all the lands belonging to the chapter house. In war, he handled the movement of the men, the pack trains, the food procurement, and other issues of moving an army.

Turcopolier
This officer was the third in line militarily. He was in command of the light cavalry and the Sergeant brothers (see below).
Marshal
The Marshal was in charge of all arms, as well as all horses. He was very much a military man, and a Master would usually consult with him, as well as the Seneschal and the Turcopolier, before making any final decisions on tactics.

Templar Marshal

Under-Marshal
The first officer under the Marshal, the Under-Marshal was in charge of the lesser equipment, bridles, padding for saddles, barrels of water, and other supply problems. He held a very important position in battle because he held the piebald banner, a flag at the head of all, to keep stragglers together.
Standard Bearer
Also called the Confanonier, the Standard Bearer was in charge of the Squires (see below). He was their paymaster, their disciplinarian, and the man who checked over their very important work of keeping the knights’ horses and weapons in good order. He didn’t actually “bear the standard” in battle — he marched in front of the banner and led his marching column.

Templar Banner bearer

Knight
The knight was the backbone of the battlefield. Knights were the equivalent of the cavalry. A small force of knights was very powerful, skilled in warfare, clad in armor, able to take on a large number of foot soldiers. Only a man whose father and grandfather both had been knights could become one, and if he were caught lying about his lineage, the penalty was severe.

Templar Knight

The knights dressed in the famous white habit adorned with a red cross. There was no mistaking a Templar knight on the battlefield. Hair was cut short, but knights were forbidden to shave their beards, probably in keeping with the Muslim belief that a beard was a sign of greater masculinity. No sense giving your enemies a reason not to respect you.
Sergeant
Usually from a lower social class than the more noble knights, the Sergeant was still a light cavalry officer, the chief support officer for the knight. Sergeants dressed in a black tunic and a black or brown mantle, often with a red cross.

Knights Templar Sergeant

Treasurer
The Treasurer’s duties are clear — this was the guy who kept the books.

Draper
The Draper was in charge of all the clothing and bed linen of everyone in the Order. He also had the power to oversee everyone of every rank, and to chastise them if their clothing was not proper for their position, or if anything decorated it, such as a collar of fur on a knight’s white robe or mantle.
Squires
Squires were the young men who, just like in the movies, were there to assist the knight in any way possible, from polishing his weapons to feeding his horses. The difference for a Templar Squire is that this was often a hired position, especially in the first hundred years of the Order. It was only later that many Squires were there specifically to test themselves and their mettle and to climb to the order of Knight.

Lay Servants
Lay Servants could run the gamut, from masons brought in to do building or repair work to personal servants to an officer. The hierarchical statutes of the Templar Rule laid out precisely how many of such servants each officer was allowed to have. For a Templar to have too many would be a sin of pride.

Chaplain brothers
One of the most important positions within a Templar commandery was that of the Chaplain brother. The job came with many delicate layers of meaning. He was sort of the internal priest for the Order. He had the power to hear confessions and to give absolution for sins. In fact, Templars were forbidden to say their confession to anyone else without a papal dispensation, which simply means special permission from the pope. This is a very important point, because in effect, what the pope did was to make the Templars spiritually, as well as politically, independent from the rest of the Church. They were not answerable to local clerics or bishops, but only to the pope.

Commanders of the Lands
Jerusalem, Antioch and Tripoli
These Templar officers operated much like a Baillie and operated under the Masters. Commanders were responsible for all Templar houses, castles and farms in their jurisdiction.

The personal retinue of the Commanders consisted of two squires, two foot soldiers, one sergeant, one deacon and one Saracen scribe. Like others, the Commander had four horses at his command as well as one palfrey (riding horse).

Provincial Masters
Provincial Masters, who governed the western districts, were similar to the Commanders of Lands, but seem to have largely been responsible for managing revenue and recruiting new men to the Order.
Templar Offices
Templar offices were called bailies, meaning something entrusted to someone. It’s the root word for the more familiar term of bailiff.

Musashi Swords review, company info and product line. Musashi creates a very affordable but quality Japanese swords, tantos, ninja swords and accessoires.

Musashi swords

Musashi Katana Swords are becoming well known for their thick sharp blades and quality fittings. Musashi Swords are functional Katana Swords and beautiful as well as economical. These Japanese Swords are made at the famous Chris Zhou academy known for their excellence in sword making.

Musashi Swords Package

The Musashi Katana Swords are a MUST have addition and one that you will be proud to own. They have now separated their swords into the beginner swords which will now be called Musha Swords and their higher end swords will remain Musashi Swords. They are both still made from the same manufacturer, they are just categorizing them now. Same manufacturer, same great samurai sword!

History of Medieval jousting tournaments, knights fights and war sport in medieval times. Knight tournaments started in 11th century and lasted till mass firearm development in 17th century (30 Years War in Europe).

Medieval Jousting Tournaments

Tournaments started in France in the 11th century. They were public contests of courage and skill. Usually they were held to entertain royalty. They fought on an enclosed field. Many knights died. Many peasants were also killed when the horses went out of control.

The joust was a type of medieval sport which consisted of two horses charging at each other from opposite directions with a rider holding a sharp lance. They were only separated by a low wooden fence. Once somebody fell off they are usually hurt or killed. Knights would either forfeit their horse and armor or if able, they would fight on ground with a sword and shield. The object of the joust was to knock your opponent off their horse, which was pretty hard to do because the back of the saddle was about 1 foot tall. If the knight ever fell, his squire, (which are knights in training), would make sure they were all right. If the knight splintered 3 lances it was either a draw or his choice was to fight on the ground. The joust could last for days because all knights would compete in it.

Hoofbeats thunder on the hard dirt. The big heavy armor clacks as one knight fights another. The king watches with interest as two lances smash together at full force. One man falls to the hard dirt ground. That’s what happens at the scene of a joust.

The armor was hot and stuffy. It weighed about 50 pounds. Some gloves were molded together and could not move. The horses the knights used were stallions. They are strong and nimble. The horses had to wear armor too. The ladies would give her favorite knight something like a scarf or a glove to show that he was their “special” knight.

Jousting tournament

There was another kind of tournament called the melee. The melee consists of two teams with flags on their backs using clubs and blunt swords. The object was to knock the flags off. One of the less popular tournaments was on water. Where one knight had a lance and tried to knock his opponent off his boat while other people rowed forward. They also had martial arts and kickboxing. Lots of knights made money from tournaments.

Melee Knight fight

Tournaments were the highlight of castle life. A herald or knight issue a challenge. People made wooden stands decorated with pennants for the royalty. Small tents were made for the peasants. People were hired to keep track of the winners. Anyone was allowed to enter if they had a suit of armor, a horse , and a sword and shield.

Medieval Tournament Ceremony

Tournaments ended with the final decay of feudalism and chivalry in the 17th century. They stopped combats and made them state pageants. The church tried to stop tournaments because people often died. The church failed. The development of firearms and their widespread use helped stop the jousting tournaments.

History of Knights Templar. Order of Knights Templars. Famous Knights Templar. Templar symbols-cross and seal.

History of Knights Templar.

Knights Templar, a religious military order of knighthood established at the time of the Crusades that became a model and inspiration for other military orders. Originally founded to protect Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land, the order assumed greater military duties during the 12th century. Its prominence and growing wealth, however, provoked opposition from rival orders. Falsely accused of blasphemy and blamed for Crusader failures in the Holy Land, the order was destroyed by King Philip IV of France.

Founding the Knights Templar Order
Following the success of the First Crusade (1095–99), a number of Crusader states were established in the Holy Land, but these kingdoms lacked the necessary military force to maintain more than a tenuous hold over their territories. Most Crusaders returned home after fulfilling their vows, and Christian pilgrims to Jerusalem suffered attacks from Muslim raiders. Pitying the plight of these Christians, eight or nine French knights led by Hugh de Payns vowed in late 1119 or early 1120 to devote themselves to the pilgrims’ protection and to form a religious community for that purpose. Baldwin II, king of Jerusalem, gave them quarters in a wing of the royal palace in the area of the former Temple of Solomon, and from this they derived their name.

Although the Templars were opposed by those who rejected the idea of a religious military order and later by those who criticized their wealth and influence, they were supported by many secular and religious leaders. Beginning in 1127, Hugh undertook a tour of Europe and was well received by many nobles, who made significant donations to the knights. The Templars obtained further sanction at the Council of Troyes in 1128, which may have requested that Bernard of Clairvaux compose the new rule. Bernard also wrote In Praise of the New Knighthood (c. 1136), which defended the order against its critics and contributed to its growth. In 1139 Pope Innocent II issued a bull that granted the order special privileges: the Templars were allowed to build their own oratories and were not required to pay the tithe; they were also exempt from episcopal jurisdiction, being subject to the pope alone.

The rule of the order was modeled after the Benedictine Rule, especially as understood and implemented by the Cistercians. The Knights Templar swore an oath of poverty, chastity, and obedience and renounced the world, just as the Cistercians and other monks did. Like the monks, the Templars heard the divine office during each of the canonical hours of the day and were expected to honour the fasts and vigils of the monastic calendar. They were frequently found in prayer and expressed particular veneration to the Virgin Mary. They were not allowed to gamble, swear, or become drunk and were required to live in community, sleeping in a common dormitory and eating meals together. They were not, however, strictly cloistered, as were the monks, nor were they expected to perform devotional reading (most Templars were uneducated and unable to read Latin). The knights’ primary duty was to fight. The Templars gradually expanded their duties from protecting pilgrims to mounting a broader defense of the Crusader states in the Holy Land. They built castles, garrisoned important towns, and participated in battles, fielding significant contingents against Muslim armies until the fall of Acre, the last remaining Crusader stronghold in the Holy Land, in 1291. Their great effectiveness was attested by the sultan Saladin following the devastating defeat of Crusader forces at the Battle of Hattin; he bought the Templars who were taken prisoner and later had each of them executed.

Knights Templar

Knights Templar organization and structure

By the mid-12th century the constitution of the order and its basic structure were established. It was headed by a grand master, who was elected for life and served in Jerusalem. Templar territories were divided into provinces, which were governed by provincial commanders, and each individual house, called a preceptory, was headed by a preceptor. General chapter meetings of all members of the order were held to address important matters affecting the Templars and to elect a new master when necessary. Similar meetings were held at the provincial level and on a weekly basis in each house.

The Templars were originally divided into two classes: knights and sergeants. The knight-brothers came from the military aristocracy and were trained in the arts of war. They assumed elite leadership positions in the order and served at royal and papal courts. Only the knights wore the Templars’ distinctive regalia, a white surcoat marked with a red cross. The sergeants, or serving-brothers, who were usually from lower social classes, made up the majority of members. They dressed in black habits and served as both warriors and servants. The Templars eventually added a third class, the chaplains, who were responsible for holding religious services, administering the sacraments, and addressing the spiritual needs of the other members. Although women were not allowed to join the order, there seems to have been at least one Templar nunnery.

The Templars eventually acquired great wealth. The kings and great nobles of Spain, France, and England gave lordships, castles, seigniories, and estates to the order, so that by the mid-12th century the Templars owned properties scattered throughout western Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Holy Land. The Templars’ military strength enabled them to safely collect, store, and transport bullion to and from Europe and the Holy Land, and their network of treasure storehouses and their efficient transport organization made them attractive as bankers to kings as well as to pilgrims to the Holy Land.

End of Knights Templar

The Templars were not without enemies, however. They had long engaged in a bitter rivalry with the other great military order of Europe, the Hospitallers, and, by the late 13th century, proposals were being made to merge the two contentious orders into one. The fall of Acre to the Muslims in 1291 removed much of the Templars’ reason for being, and their great wealth, extensive landholdings in Europe, and power inspired resentment toward them. Although an ex-Templar had accused the order of blasphemy and immorality as early as 1304 (though more likely 1305), it was only later—after Philip IV ordered the arrest on October 13, 1307, of every Templar in France and sequestered all the Templars’ property in the country—that most of the people of Europe became aware of the extent of the alleged crimes of the order. Philip accused the Templars of heresy and immorality; specific charges against them included idol worship (of a bearded male head said to have great powers), worship of a cat, homosexuality, and numerous other errors of belief and practice. At the order’s secret initiation rite, it was claimed, the new member denied Christ three times, spat on the crucifix, and was kissed on the base of the spine, on the navel, and on the mouth by the knight presiding over the ceremony. The charges, now recognized to be without foundation, were calculated to stoke contemporary fears of heretics, witches, and demons and were similar to allegations Philip had used against Pope Boniface VIII.

Knights Templar Burning-Jacques de Molay

Burning of Knights Templar
An illustration of Templar grand master Jacques de Molay being led to the stake. The reasons why Philip sought to destroy the Templars are unclear; he may have genuinely feared their power and been motivated by his own piety to destroy a heretical group, or he may have simply seen an opportunity to seize their immense wealth, being chronically short of money himself. At any rate, Philip mercilessly pursued the order and had many of its members tortured to secure false confessions. Although Pope Clement V, himself a Frenchman, ordered the arrest of all the Templars in November 1307, a church council in 1311 voted overwhelmingly against suppression, and Templars in countries other than France were found innocent of the charges. Clement, however, under strong pressure from Philip, suppressed the order on March 22, 1312, and the Templars’ property throughout Europe was transferred to the Hospitallers or confiscated by secular rulers. Knights who confessed and were reconciled to the church were sent into retirement in the order’s former houses or in monasteries, but those who failed to confess or who relapsed were put on trial. Among those judged guilty was the order’s last grand master, Jacques de Molay. Brought before a commission established by the pope, de Molay and other leaders were judged relapsed heretics and sentenced to life in prison. The master protested and repudiated his confession and was burned at the stake, the last victim of a highly unjust and opportunistic persecution.

Importance of Knights Templar
At the time of its destruction, the order was an important institution in both Europe and the Holy Land and already an object of myth and legend. The Templars were associated with the Grail legend and were identified as defenders of the Grail castle through the remainder of the Middle Ages. In the 18th century the Freemasons claimed to have received in a secret line of succession esoteric knowledge that the Templars had possessed. The Templars were also identified as Gnostics and were accused of involvement in a number of conspiracies, including one that was allegedly behind the French Revolution. In the 20th century the image of Christ on the Shroud of Turin was identified as the head allegedly worshipped by the Templars. Resurrecting a vein of pseudohistory and Grail legends, authors in the 20th century, claiming to assert historical fact but writing what most scholars regard as fantasy, implicated the Templars in a vast conspiracy dedicated to preserving the blood line of Jesus. Similar occult conspiracy theories were also used by writers of fiction in the 20th and 21st centuries.

Reign of Assassins story:
Set in ancient China, Zeng Jing is a skilled assassin who finds herself in possession of a mystical Buddhist monk’s remains. She begins a quest to return the remains to its rightful resting place, and thus places herself in mortal danger because a team of assassins is in a deadly pursuit to possess the remains which holds an ancient power-wielding secret.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, 2000
Legendary Chinese martial arts movie. Directed by Ang Lee and starring Michelle Khan, Chang Chen, Zhang Ziyi, Chow Yun-Fat.
The film is based on a novel by Wang Du Lu. It is one of the 73rd Annual Academy Award winners, honored as the best in Foreign Language, Music (Score), Art Direction and Cinematography.
The Chinese Connection (Fist of Furry), 1972
Directed by Lo Wei and starring Bruce Lee. Original title: Fist of Fury.
This movie is Bruce Lee’s classic. Want to see Bruce Lee’s action, this is the one.

The Shaolin Temple, 1982
First movie with Jet Li. Jet Li was the all-round wushu champion (martial arts) at that time (about 1982). Thus want to see the real thing, see Jet Li in this movie. Directed by Chang Hsin-Yen.

Red Cliff, 2008
China’s Three Kingdoms period (220-280 A.D.). Civil war at time of Han dynasty. Directed by John Woo.

The Legend of Drunken Master,
Wong Fei-Hong (Jackie Chen) returning home with his father after a shopping expedition. Wong Fei-Hong is unwittingly caught up in the battle between foreigners who wish to export ancient Chinese artifacts and loyalists who don’t want the pieces to leave the country.

Warlords, 2007
A story of three blood brothers and their struggle in the midst of war and political upheaval in historical Chine. It is based on “The Assassination of Ma,” a Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) story about the killing of general Ma Xinyi.

Hero, 2002
In ancient China, before the reign of the first emperor, warring factions throughout the Six Kingdoms plot to assassinate the most powerful ruler, Qin. When a minor official defeats Qin’s three principal enemies, he is summoned to the palace to tell Qin the story of his surprising victory.

Seven Swords, 2005
Seven warriors come together to protect a village from an evil warlord.

True Legend, 2010
Su Qi-Er retired from his life as a renowned Qing dynasty general in order to pursue his dream of a family and his own martial arts school. However, Su’s peaceful life is shattered when his vengeful adopted brother, Yuan Lie, kidnaps his son and leaves Su for dead. Cast: Xun Zhou, Man Cheuk Chiu and Michelle Yeoh.
Swordsman (Xiao ao jiang hu), 1990
A scroll containing valuable martial arts secrets is stolen from Emperor. Movie from Ming dynasty with Chinese and Japanese warriors.

Designed under the auspices of cutting master James Williams the Raptor series, our new line of cutting katanas, has been created for the cutting practitioner who does not necessarily have access to mats but who wishes to practice and perfect his cutting technique. The blades are forged in 5160 high-carbon steel and specially heat treated to produce very high resilience and greater tolerance of misdirected cuts than a conventional differentially tempered blade. This steel structure also avoids the need for excessive thickness, allowing the blades to replicate the weight and handling characteristics of Japanese originals. The edge geometry is configured to facilitate the cutting of both soft and semi-hard materials without chipping, allowing the cutter a wide choice of targets.

Each katana in the series features a unique blade style, each with its origins in Japanese swordmaking history, providing the cutting practitioner with choices in both aesthetics and handling characteristics.

Bruncvik Legend-Medieval legend of Bruncvik the knight, his famous sword and powerful white Czech Lion. Bruncvik is one of legendary symbols of Czech Republic (Kingdom of Bohemia).

Bruncvik Legend

Neomenia was was worried about Bruncvik – she begged him not to leave Prague for his adventures to the unknown lands. But Bruncvik decided to leave and gave her his wife a ring to wear, and took hers, and promised he would return in 7 years’ time. He told her that she would recognize him by her ring, and that if he didn’t return in time it meant that he was dead, and that she should remarry.

Bruncvik with His Legendary Sword, Prague, Czech

Bruncvik set out on his adventures accompanied by 50 men on horseback. They travelled far and wide, soon they’ve reached the sea (supposedly Adriatic sea) and took to the sea in a large boat. After several uneventful months, a storm whipped up and bathed them in a yellow glow. It was the dreaded Amber Isle, which sucked sailors to its shores.

After two years on the island, all of the men and horses were dead except for Bruncvik and the oldest man of his former consort. The old man told Bruncvik how to get away, and Bruncvik promised to take care of the old man’s family, should he ever return to Prague. A large carnivorous bird was just about to make his annual trip to the island (a chance to escape the uninhabited island)! The old man sewed Bruncvik into one of the horse skinsand left Bruncvik near the top of the Amber Mountain. The bird carried Bruncvik away to its nest, as food for its babies, and flew away.
Bruncvik drew his sword and made short work of the rest of his horse skins disguise and escaped.
He travelled far and soon arrived in a deep, wild forest, where he spotted a lion, fighting a nine-headed monster. Bruncvik battled with the lion gainst the monster for 2 days. After they’ve killed the monster, chopping off all its heads one by one, they both dropped down with exhaustion. The lion cared for Bruncvik and brought him food, and nursed him back to health. From that time on, the two were inseparable. During his long trip in one of the castles, Bruncvik found a magic sword that knew how to chop people’s heads off all on its own – all Bruncvik had to do is say “Blade, heads off!” and off they rolled. Bruncvik and his lion had many adventures together in strange lands, inhabited by demons. Some of them were half grey and half white, some had a dog head instead of a human head, and their king had eyes in the back of his head as well as the front. But none of these heads stayed attached to their necks for long after Bruncvik’s arrival there.

After 3 more years of long trips to weird lands, Bruncvik came home, he was surprised to see everyone celebrating the wedding of Neomenia (the Queen). It had, after all, been longer than 7 years. Bruncvik snuck his wife’s ring – which he had worn all the time – into his wife’s goblet of wine, and left the castle. When his wife drank her wine saw the ring, she recognized it immediately. She called the wedding off, thus sending her ex-bridegroom into a mad fury. He and 50 of his friends set off to track Bruncvik down and kill him. Soon, the 51 heads of all of his rivals were rolling on the ground, chopped off by that magic sword, and Bruncvik was in his beloved Neomenia’s arms again.

Bruncvik never left home again, and his pet lion never left his side. When Bruncvik died at a ripe old age – leaving behind an heir, Ladislav, the lion died of a broken heart just days after, sitting at the side of Bruncvik’s grave.

Bruncvik-symbol of hope

Bruncvik’s lion is said to be the two-tailed lion in the Czech state symbol. As the Knights of Blanik are entrusted with the same task, many have drawn the conclusion that St Wenceslas – with Bruncvik’s sword – will lead the Knights of Blanik when that dark hour comes.

Today the sword’s hiding place is inside the stones of the Charles Bridge next to the statue of Bruncvik that stands below the bridge (and the dragon that Bruncvik killed below the other bridge)– and one day, when the Czech lands are at their lowest point, at the very edge of ruin, St Wenceslas will rise from the dead, take Bruncvik’s sword, and save the nation.

Bruncvik and White Czech Two Tails Lion pictures

Prague Castle and Charles Bridge with Bruncvik sword-If you like medieval times you have to visit Prague. It is difficult to imagine, gothic builders were able to create something similar. You must simply see this bridge yourself. Charles Bridge is from 1346.